Minor Tribal Girl Rape: BJP, Congress blame State Govt

Bhubaneswar: A day after a minor tribal girl was allegedly raped inside a bus in Puri, opposition parties– Congress and BJP held Naveen Patnaik-led government responsible for the incident.

Senior Congress leader and Jatani MLA, Sura Routray, blamed the State government for the incident and said that despite deployment of 10,000 cops in the city, such incidents are happening.

Demanding a judicial inquiry into the incident, Routray said, “It is a shameful incident as the minor girl was raped inside a bus in Puri, where 10,000 cops are deployed for Rath Yatra. There should be a probe into the incident.”

Similarly, the BJP’s State secretary Lekhashree Samantsinghar blamed the State government and tweeted,”Naveen babu you have failed on all counts, unable to provide security to either women or tribals or even minors.”

Speaking on the issue, Odisha Transport Minister Padmanabha Beherasaid that a probe into the matter is underway. “I came to know about the incident from media reports. A probe has already been started into the matter and the Transport department will provide all sorts of help to the police,” said Behera.

The girl was allegedly raped inside a bus in Puri late last night.As per reports, the girl is employed at a water park near Maltipatpur in the district. On Monday, she was returning from her home and boarded the bus in Cuttack to return to Puri. She had to deboard the bus at Maltipatpur but she fell asleep and woke up at around 9 pm at Puri bus stand. The helper then reportedly told the girl to sleep inside the bus and later, he allegedly raped her.

Some locals spotted the girl crying near Saradhabali area following which they informed police. Later, Kumbharpara police reached the spot and rescued the girl. The police also arrested the accused helper after interrogation.

Odishatv.in is an initiative by Odisha Television to connect netizens to the latest information about Odisha and beyond. The site is also a gateway to the state and offers a wide spectrum of subjects such as History, Demography, Art and Culture, Tourist places, Festivals, Eminent sons of soil and so on.